I ate a lot

Happy Holidays! When was the last time I posted? It has been a while. Well, to be quite honest I tend to sit down with the best of intentions but you know what they say about good intentions and all.

I spent Christmas with my bud Carrey and her family in Spring, TX. I came out of that about 10 pounds heavier, I'm sure. There was a lot to eat and I ate a lot. So, time to get back on the wagon. I once stated that if my approach didn't work then I'd try something else. Ok, well I'm trying something else. Paleo-schmaleo is what I'll be doing. I should probably not add the "schmaleo" for sincerity's sake. But I'm giving it a try. And without the "bitterness in my heart" that I claimed to have a few weeks back. I'm going to give it an honest try.

Maybe I should get some pizza while it's still allowed...

I Am Crossfit challenge starts Jan 7th and I'm all signed up. Time for the extra padding to G-O!

My Biggest Loser Moment

Time to blow the dust off my blog. It sure has been a while. Some happenings? I recently watched 2 friends commit to each other for the rest of their lives. Wow. And I mean that in a "Oh Sweet Baby Jesus I feel the noose tightening around my neck someone open a window it's HOT in here!!!" sort of way. Not that I have commitment issues or anything. But the idea just seems so....permanent. Which I suppose is the point. But, they were both beautiful, the wedding was beautiful, and I had a great time.

Move on to the next weekend. Lean Turkey Challenge! And the winners was... (drum roll please)... mine! Great job Wild Turkeys. It was a lot of fun. Now, I'm a competitive person but I'm also a high stress person so I have to now look back on myself and laugh. I stayed in Friday night to get my rest. Um, why were my teammates posting on Facebook that they were out downtown? Get to bed!!! I had my stuff laid out to wear, bag packed, and alarm set for early am. Early am as way earlier than necessary. I was in bed by around 9pm with visions of double unders dancing in my head.

The next morning I had my breakfast, water, and coffee and proceeded to make several bathroom runs to coax every ounce of liquid back out of my body. Honestly, you'd have thought I was preparing for the games by how anxious I was. Fast forward to getting to the gym and learning that one of my teammates was filling in for another team low in numbers. Last minute game change??? Argh!!!

And then it was ok. This was the best way I could've spent my Saturday morning. Definately going to do it again last year. My final body comp was interesting though. It was a Biggest Loser moment. Imagine the contestant getting on the scale to discover that they've gained weight. Shocker!! Well, I gained 3 pounds. But here's the kicker. I lost bodyfat. What does that mean? I gained muscle. My clothes are not any looser BUT I have been feeling a little stronger. So, there ya go. That, in itself, is an accomplishment.

Just a burp

Fall is here! And it's beautiful!!!

I just wrapped up a very long and hard weekend working at the ACL Music Festival. This was my 6th year working the festival. I had a moment on Sunday while taking a break when I realized that it was all absolutely perfect. It was one of those moments (few as they are) where I was very aware of the moment. The sky was beautiful with very few clouds. The air was pleasant. Not too warm, not too cold. There was music in the air. And for the most part, people were very happy. How nice.

Monday after the festival I was dead tired. Which was unfortunate because I had crossfit at 4pm. I woke up that morning, got up, and then got back into bed with the intentions of calling in. I then thought about how little vacation time I had and how I needed it all for my road trip with Cora next year. Sigh....I then got back out of bed and managed to make it to work.

I had a body comp at 3:45 before class which, after my weekend of standing all day long, I was not really looking forward to. I will insert here that having to pull my own drinks let me move around a bit more so I didn't have the edema issues that I normally have after ACL. Anyways, the body comp didn't happen. That is a frustrating story better suited for another time. I will insert (again) say that Team Clusterfuck seems to be appropriate for our team name....but whatever.

Ok, let's get to the fun part: The Workout.

5 rounds of:
1. 400m run
2. Hang power cleans
3. Ring dips

16 minute time limit

All I can say about that is...I'm glad it was just a burp and not vomit. Cause I surely thought that I would. Vomit that is.

plantation workouts

Happy Monday all! I kick-started my week with a run this morning. 4:20am the alarm went off and I managed to drag my tired self out of bed. Got dressed and hit the road. It was slow going but my body finally managed to wake up. And then I had an absolutely fabulous run. I went exploring in my neighborhood and greatly enjoyed myself. And it was cool! And by that I mean the temperature wasn't already hot and muggy. Good-bye summer and helloooo fall!

50 minutes later and I finished my run. Great thing is I felt so good I could've kept going. Had I not had to work today I would have. But I was really satisfied with myself. I only ran twice last week and only made it to the gym to lift once, and that was yesterday for legs. But I have crossfit 3 times a week and I think that's why I'm able to get away with less daily running. Fabulous! Yet another benefit to crossfit.

I am feeling slightly guilty for not making more of my routine gym workouts. I walked in yesterday and it seemed like ages since I'd been there last. It had been a week and that's forever in my book. I'm still trying to shift my thinking from figure competing to crossfit, with a half marathon thrown in for good measure. And I'm such a creature of habit that it's taking some time. But, I'm really loving life now. I look forward to my workouts. And even when the wod's irritate the crap out of me (or beat the crap out of me in the case of double unders, or plantation workout as I like to call it) I still love it. Just think, tomorrow I get another year older and I'm getting better with age. Kinda like a fine wine, but without the hangover.

Winning isn't normal

I recently came across the following excerpt while reading the latest copy of Austin Fit Magazine. My training goals are shifting and I'm trying to truly push my body to the next level. Today was my very first official crossfit class and boy was I pushed. Even though it's all still new to me and I felt very akward doing some of the movements, even though I ran out of time and didn't finish the workout, and even though I nearly knocked myself on the head with a kettlebell, I loved it. None of any of that mattered as long as I kept pushing. This is my new mountain to climb, remember? And I'm absolutely determined to not only get better, but to be great. And that means I have to learn, practice, and work hard. Because in the end, I want to win.

Winning Isn’t Normal

by Dr. Keith Bell

"Winning isn’t normal. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with winning. It just isn’t the norm. It’s highly unusual."

"Every race only has one winner. No matter how many people are entered, only one person, or one team, wins."

"Winning is unusual. As such, it requires unusual action."

"In order to win, you must do extraordinary things. You can’t just be one of the crowd. The crowd doesn’t win. You have to be willing to stand out and act differently."

"Your actions need to reflect unusual values and priorities. You have to value success more than others do. You have to want it more. (Now take note! Wanting it more is a decision you make and act upon – not some inherent quality or burning inner drive or inspiration!) And you have to make that value a priority."

"You can’t train like everyone else. You have to train more and train better."

"You can’t talk like everyone else. You can’t think like everyone else. You can’t be too willing to join the crowd, to do what is expected, to act in a socially accepted manner, to do what’s in. You need to be willing to stand out in the crowd and consistently take exceptional action. If you want to win, you need to accept the risks and perhaps the loneliness…because winning isn’t normal!"

©copyright Dr. Keith Bell

My mountain

Yesterday I officially signed up for my crossfit classes for the month of September at Crossfit Central. I don't think the guy at the front desk was quite ready for someone like me. He certainly had his work cut out for him as I asked him question after question. I wanted to make sure I knew all my options, and took advantage of everything that I could. These classes aren't cheap and I want to get as much as I can out of this experience.

I asked about a package called Crossfit Platinum. That would allow me to take classes 5xweek. In a nutshell he thought it would be too much for me. He then went on to tell me how important rest and nutrition was and how I should just be completely spent from crossfit. I had to tell him that it wasn't my first rodeo. I'm an athlete, plain and simple. I'm constantly looking for competition in the most mundane of matters. I need to be pushed as hard as I can. I want to be pushed as hard as I can be. And then, push me a little bit more. I kinda like the idea of staring up at a mountain that seems cruel and treacherous and then climbing it.

Crossfit is my next mountain.

So with that I'm reminded of a quote that I came across earlier this year. I think we all could benefit from it so here it is:

"No one puts limits on what I can do. Not even me."

Let's climb.

Where exactly is "out there?"

I had this desire earlier to get all dressed up and eat a fancy, sit-down meal. And then I realized that I wanted to go on a date. And then the thought of dating made my chest hurt and I felt a smidge (if not more) of anxiety. And so...I'm not ready to date. Which is fine since my options these days are extremely limited. One does have to put him or herself out there to date right? Yeah, that would probably have to be step 1. Actually, make that step 2 as step 1 should really be to not be seized with panic at the thought of dating.

Step 1. Be ready to date.
Step 2. Put yourself out there.
Step 3. Figure out where "out there" is.

Got it. ( I swear I've done this before...it's just been a while)

Today is my first day of Crossfit Elements at Crossfit Central. (Can I get a fist pump?) I'm really excited. I spent the mont of August doing a crossfit bootcamp and just loved it. I love the intensity that I can bring to the sport. And I'm such a competitive person that this is perfect for me. I'm really anxious to learn more about crossfit and start applying that to my training. And then??? Crossfit Games! (Again, feel free to fist pump.)